Father Christmas or Santa

[LetterFromLorah]

A random question!

Since I started watching CBeebies and other children's programmes a few years ago with my son, I've noticed there seems to be a preference for 'Father Christmas' rather than 'Santa'.

I would have been aware of the phrase Father Christmas as a child but we would never, ever have actually referred to Santa as anything other than 'Santa'. It sounds really strange to me to hear children on TV talk about 'Father Christmas'.

I'm from Northern Ireland so I'm wondering if this is a regional thing?

I'm curious as to what other people think?

My Welsh grandparents always referred to FC as Santa.

Now that's interesting!

Father Christmas

I was brought up in South Wales (child of the 60s) - we called him Father Christmas so my children did too.

Not sure about my younger Welsh relatives though - I think they mostly use Santa. Have just posed the question on my FB page

Santa...I'm in Ireland

@Squirrelblanket

Santa is American, it's Father Christmas in the UK.

🙄

I grew up in SE England and it was always Father Christmas. I live in central Scotland now and I never hear the word "Father Christmas", it's always Santa.

Yes, could be a regional things as MIL always says "Santa" and she's 80.

It was always Father Christmas in my house when I was a child, yet at some point in my life (and I'm not sure when it happened) I switched to calling him Santa.

I use both interchangeably. Grew up calling him Father Christmas though.

Father Christmas here - East of England

We need an FC/Santa/santy map.

Father Christmas!! I’ve always felt Santa was more of an American thing.
Much prefer Father Christmas.

Father Christmas here in SE England

Neither. He doesn't really exist.

@UndertheCedartree

As for what Father Christmas wears for me the Raymond Briggs Father Christmas is FC as I had the books growing up. So he is short and plump with a bushy white beard, red fur lined trouser suit with seperate hat and a bit grumpy! My DC are half Dutch so celebrate St.Nicklaas - we think of him as tall and slim with the robes and hood green and red.

What’s good enough for Raymond Briggs is good enough for us. I love those books.

Neither. He doesn't really exist.

Oh dear. Someone's getting a bucket of coal this year.

@jessstan1 oh, so you're being miserable here as well! What a joy you are.

Definitely Santa here in Scotland! Hate ignorant comments about “Santa” being American and how it’s supposed to be Father Christmas in the UK 🙄

Father Christmas here. Incidentally thats what he’s called in France, too - Pere Noel.

I read somewhere that FC was seen as preferable to SC during/after WW1, because Santa Claus sounded too German.
Maybe the same applied in France.

Typically, like Halloween, the English think Santa is "American", when it's just as British as Father Christmas, when you remember Britain is more than just England.

Santa Claus IS American. It comes from Sinterklass which is the Dutch name for St Nicholas. The character was brought to the Americas by Dutch immigrants, changed to Santa Claus and then spread from there to other parts of the world (such as Scotland).

Why would anyone imagine that someone called Claus (Klaus) was authentically Scottish?

Santy here in Ireland! As a child I always thought father Christmas was what really posh british people said

Father Christmas here (South East).

There seem to be more and more books with 'Santa' written in, I change it to Father Christmas when I am reading!

I think it's understandable that English people regard Santa as American. If you grow up with people you know saying Father Christmas and Americans on tv and in films saying Santa it's a logical conclusion.
The same with 'pants' and 'trousers'.

In Scotland its Santa but I think Father Christmas sounds much nicer

Father Christmas is more UK, Santa originally more American but now interchangeable.

Oh the good old annual debate! Regional or class? 😂

NE England, we say Santa (actually Santy when I was growing up). I've only known one family use FC and it sounds odd, they're very much in the minority here. Of course Londoncentric people will insist that FC is what is the English say and Santa is American whereas Santa Claus has much more authentic history.